RICHMOND, INDIANA (AP) – Authorities in eastern Indiana lifted a dayslong evacuation order late on Sunday afternoon for an area near a plastics fire after they said it was determined air quality and other environmental concerns related to the fire were deemed safe.
Wayne County Emergency Management lifted the order for people within a one kilometre radius of the fire scene after consulting with state, federal and local health officials, Agency Director Matthew Cain said at a news conference.
Testing of air debris would continue, he and Mayor Dave Snow said. At least 1,500 people live in the evacuation zone, though it is not known how many residents actually obeyed the call to evacuate after the fire began last Tuesday afternoon.
“I feel very confident that people will be safe when they move back to their homes,” said the Wayne County Health Department’s Health Officer Dr David Jetmore.
Richmond Fire Chief Tim Brown said crews will remain at the 14 acre former factory site to extinguish flareups. It was declared under control on Thursday night when the last flames were extinguished.
He previously said fire officials will meet to decide what their next steps will be at the site, where tons of recycled plastic stored for resale caught fire. The site is in Richmond, about 70 miles east of Indianapolis, near the Ohio border.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has said hydrogen cyanide and benzene were detected at the fire site. EPA contractors collected fire debris over the weekend that landed near schools or in parks and private yards.
At least one sample has tested positive for asbestos, which can harm lungs.
PHOTO: AP
